Why four fingers

[stratego]

Why is it standard for cartoon human to have four fingers (including the thumb)?

 

[Gogf]

Maybe it's so that they don't have a middle finger (I actually heard that somewhere).

 

[stratego]

South Park characters still flip you off though

 

[Perfection]

Because it's easier to draw it that way in terms of finger proportions.

 

[stratego]

Proportion to what?

 

[Giotto]

Probably easier to proportion because cartoon character's body parts are usually of an exxagerated nature and the fingers would look too long and wierd if they were proportioned correctly, and five fat fingers would look too close together.... I can't paint or draw people though so I very well could be utterly wrong

 

[Archer 007]

You actually very right. Drawing the hand is the hardest part of the body.

 

[Civrules]

Originally posted by Gogf
Maybe it's so that they don't have a middle finger (I actually heard that somewhere).

I've heard the same, actually.

 

[cgannon64]

5-fingered hands just look stupid, at least when I draw them.

Maybe because, if you think about it, one of our fingers is kind of extraneous? I mean who needs four index fingers? Three will do.

 

[Turner]

You have four index fingers? I only have two. One on each hand.

 

[WillJ]

Good question. I always thought it's just because cartoonists are lazy. The middle finger hyptothesis is interesting, though.

Originally posted by Turner_727
You have four index fingers? I only have two. One on each hand.

And he recommends three! One and a half on each hand, I suppose?

 

[Turner]

I know. . .

Crazy New Yorkers.

 

[stratego]

I think what cgannon is saying is that he has three hands.

Speaking of three, the Ninja turtles have three fingers and it's so obvious that they're missing two. But when a cartoon character has four fingers it just looks natural.

 

[ShiplordAtvar]

Originally posted by stratego
Why is it standard for cartoon human to have four fingers (including the thumb)?

Does it take less time to draw four fingers than it does to draw the human standard five? I don't know, I'm not an artist.

 

[Captain Carnage]

In ten years, they will have five fingers.

 

[Goober]

Because it is easier to draw 4 finger rather then 5. Simple as that.

Note they usually leave out the thumb, I have noticed.

 

[thestonesfan]

Animators always look for shortcuts.

I remember hearing that Bugs Bunny's artists went from three whiskers to two whiskers and saved a fortune in pencils.

 

[Cilpot]

It's not mandatory with four fingers. Disney started it, and then others followed.

One cartoonist working for disney delibretly drawed six fingers on his own cartoons when he quit as a silent protest.